The record heat we experienced this summer carried over into the nights as well, it seems. Environmentalists are pointing to that as a harbinger of what they call the "dark side" of impending climate change.
In Maryland, 12 of 16 weather stations in the Historical Climatology Network reported their nighttime low temperatures this summer were the highest ever recorded, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council. And the other four stations in the state reported their average lows after dark were among their five warmest. To see the Maryland data, go here.
The hot summer nighlts weren't limited to Maryland or the mid-Atlanatic, either. NRDC says nearly one out of four weather stations in the lower 48 states recorded hotter average night-time lows than at any time since 1895. The phenomenon extended across the East and Midwest.
One summer does not global warming make, of course, but this one comes on the heels of the hottest decade on record. Why do enviros call hot summer nights the "dark side" of climate change? The NRDC's Kim Knowlton says the nights are particularly bad for the elderly and those unable to afford air conditioning, since they can't get relief from the heat even after dark.
BTW, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reports that this has been the hottest year on record globally so far. The first eight months have been as hot as the same period in 1998, the hottest year to date, the agency says. And this summer, at least the three months from June through August, has been the second warmest. For more, go here.
(People playing in Inner Harbor's Sondheim Fountain, July 2010, photo by Colleen McCloskey)